UDAN 5.0 LAUNCHED!

● Ministry of Civil Aviation launched the 5th round of the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) - Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN). ● It aims to further enhance connectivity to remote & regional areas of the country. ● This round of UDAN focuses on Category-2 (20-80 seats) & Category-3 (>80 seats)

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FOLLOWING THE FOUR SUCCESSFUL ROUNDS OF BIDDING, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has launched the 5th round UDAN scheme on April 21 by releasing a bid document. The Ministry has started the process of inviting bids from airlines for various routes under the fifth round of bidding of the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) to further enhance the connectivity to remote and regional areas of the country and achieve last mile connectivity.

Funding has been made available for Category 2 and Category 3 aircraft in the scheme's fifth phase, known as UDAN 5.0. According to the official statement, only aircraft operations of Category 2 (20-80 seats) and Category 3 (>80 seats) will fall in this round with no restriction on the distance between the origin and destination, with stage length cap of 600 km waived.

UDAN 5.0 will cap the Viability Gap Funding (VGF) at the same length for both Priority and Non-Priority areas. Previously, the VGF was capped at 500 km. Under the UDAN scheme, the government compensates airlines for losses incurred due to low fares through viability gap funding. The Airports Authority of India has waived airport fees, while state governments are providing free security, electricity, and firefighting services to support the scheme.

To fund the UDAN scheme, a levy of ₹50 on flight tickets has been imposed on major routes. This levy accounts for 80 per cent of the viability gap funding provided to airlines, while the remaining 20 per cent is provided by state governments.